Join the African Climate Foundation (ACF) & Work Remotely as a Programme Manager- Sustainable Finance: Apply Now!!
About the ACF
The African Climate Foundation (ACF) is the first and only African-led climate change re-granting organisation on the continent. Through its grant making, the ACF seeks to support interventions at the nexus of climate change and development that have the greatest potential to deliver long-term socio-economic transformation and inclusive development.
About the Sustainable Finance Programme
The biggest barrier to achieving Africa’s climate and development objectives is access to finance. With increasing climate variability and an estimated funding shortfall of between USD99.9-USD127.2 billion per year between 2020 and 2030 to implement Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC’s), African countries are particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts. Recognising this vulnerability and the critical importance and urgency of addressing the finance gap, the ACF’s Sustainable Finance Programme works across the ACF’s portfolios to identify opportunities to mobilise domestic and international resources around climate and development initiatives. In particular the programme works towards:
- Supporting reforms of the global financial architecture to ensure greater equity in access to finance;
- Mobilising domestic resources by supporting governments and relevant authorities to manage debt and free up fiscal space;
- Supporting the development of local, national, and regional capacity through investment in existing institutions or the creation of new institutions working towards improved fiscal resilience;
- Mobilising public and private finance and bi-lateral and multi-lateral support around ACF’s climate and development investment and country platforms, including through pioneering innovative financing mechanisms.
- Convening key stakeholders and partners, including governments, financial institutions, private actors, and civil society, around issues of importance to Africa’s climate and development objectives.
About the position
Reporting to the Head of Programmes and working closely with the Executive Director, the Programme Manager: Sustainable Finance will be responsible for:
Overseeing the execution of the Programmes strategy, including:
- Leading the development and implementation of the ACF’s finance-related work, ensuring that its strategy is relevant and fit for purpose. The ACF’s Sustainable Finance Programme is currently undergoing a strategy review and refresh. The successful candidate for this position will help to shape that strategy and lead in its broad socialization and the implementation thereof.
- Leading the development of ACF’s approach to scaling Climate and Development Investment Platforms, focusing on opportunities to replicate and scale the ‘Just Energy Transition Partnership’ (JET-P) model or investment platform models for key initiatives or portfolios in energy access and transitions, sustainable land use and agriculture and adaptation and resilience.
- Overseeing the execution of the ACF’s Finance Strategy, including leading strategy reviews, developing revised costed implementation plans, and overseeing sector-relevant research and analysis to inform effective programming, delivery, and progress monitoring.
- Facilitating close collaboration with different teams across the ACF, including with the ED, Board Members, ACF Country Leads, other Programme Managers and Communications to facilitate synergies and share learnings.
- Working closely with the MEL Manager to ensure effective monitoring and reporting against programmatic indicators, and support evaluation and learning initiatives.
- Undertaking and overseeing sector-relevant research and analysis to inform effective programming, delivery, and monitoring of progress and regularly sharing insights with ACF teams and partners verbally and in writing.
- Preparing and distributing regular and ad hoc reports on sector, portfolio, and programme performance, ensuring accurate and relevant information is accessible to colleagues and partners.
Supporting the Sustainable Finance Programmes fundraising activities:
- Managing the programmatic budget; identifying funding gaps; supporting fund raising strategies; engaging donors; and supporting in the preparation and delivery of fund-raising proposals.
Leading and overseeing the Sustainable Finance Programmes grant-making: Developing the grant-making pipeline and managing the grantee portfolio, including:
- Overseeing the programmatic grant making to ensure efficiency and effectiveness of programmatic grant making including identification of grantees, engagement with grantees, development and presentation of Board Recommendations, managing of grant contracts, grantee reporting, and ensuring delivery on ACF objectives and alignment with the Sustainable Finance strategy.
Developing and maintaining strong working relationships with key stakeholders, including:
- Governments (national and sub-national), finance institutions, civil society actors, think tanks and research organisations, the philanthropic community, and other key stakeholders.Â
- Identifying key partners through stakeholder mapping and continuous engagement.
Supporting thought leadership and communications, including:
- Contributing to the ACF’s research and online content and representing the organisation at public events or in the media.Â
- Providing support to the broader ACF team, including the Senior Management Team, the Board, on issues related to Sustainable Finance. Â
- In close collaboration with the Communications Team, effectively communicate the work of Sustainable Finance Programmes both internally and to partners.
- Support the preparation of high quality summary reports, board reports and investment reports.
Leading and managing a high performing team, including
- Working closely with other Programme Managers and the Head of Programmes, develop and track delivery against the Sustainable Finance Programmatic workplan.
- Co-developing and ensuring delivery on KPI’s and workplans; and supporting professional development by providing regular feedback; and identifying opportunities for training and capacity development.
About you
We are looking for an experienced Programme Manager with strong technical skills who is creative, solutions orientated and who can build and manage a rapidly growing portfolio of work. Requirements include but not limited to:
- A Master’s degree or equivalent in development finance
- 10 years progressive experience working in or at the interface of both public and private finance – with relevant experience in climate and development issues.
- Experience across the following areas will be an advantage:
- The global financial architecture: role of IMF, IFIs, DFIs in determining financing options, programme spending and technical assistance across low-income countries and emerging markets.
- National and supranational strategic planning: understanding of high-level fiscal strategy development, including key public finance decisions around debt management, natural resource and other government investments.
- Processes for developing high level strategic planning frameworks e.g. NDCs, NAPs and other strategies.
- Public financial management policy: Planning and the delivery of robust fiscal measures, responses and resilience
- Private financing market reforms: debt transparency and sustainability, blended finance, Climate aligned bonds and project finance.
- National and local civil society capacity: governance and accountability, sector specific capacity into participatory budgeting
- Strong leadership and management skills
- Experience working with local and national governments in Africa.
- Experience working with finance institutions including MDB’s, central banks, insurance companies and the banking sector.
- Fluency in English
- Fluency in French or Portuguese will be highly advantageous.
- Excellent communication skills (both verbal and written).
- Prioritizes work and meets deliverables.
- Strong problem-solving skills.
- Honesty, integrity, and high levels of professionalism.
Start date: Position Available Immediately
Location: Remote work. Preference will be given to candidates based in Kenya, Ethiopia, and South Africa
Closing date: 31 July 2024
For further information about the ACF, visit www.africanclimatefoundation.org.
Should you not hear back from us by 31 August 2024, please consider your application to be unsuccessful.
The ACF strives to be an equitable organisation with a team which reflects the diversity of Africa.
As part of your application, it is confirmed that by submitting your personal information to the ACF, you consent to the collection, collation, processing, and storing of such information, and the use and disclosure of such information for the purposes of recruitment.
